Articles by Daily Faceoff,Hunter Crowther

Technology

Kraken’s Brandon Montour takes leave of absence

The team said no further details would be shared at this time. Montour, 31, is in his second season with Seattle after signing a seven-year, $49.99 million contract in July 2024 that would pay him an annual average value (AAV) of $7.14 million. In 85 games with the Kraken, Montour has 18 goals and 27 assists for 45 points, averaging 22:58 of ice time. Now in his 10th NHL campaign, Montour, a native of Brantford, Ont., has recorded 84 goals and 213 assists for 297 points in 605 career regular-season games with the Kraken, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks and Buffalo Sabres. Montour has also played in 82 career postseason games, scoring 11 goals and adding 24 assist for 35 points. He won a Stanley Cup championship with the Panthers in 2023, contributing three goals and eight assts for 11 points that spring. Montour scored a career-high 18 goals with Seattle last season, and hit career highs in assists (57) and points (73) as a member of the Panthers in 2022-23. He also spent parts of three seasons in the American Hockey League, recording 26 goals and 73 assists for 99 points in 118 regular-season games with the Norfolk Admirals and San Diego Gulls. The Kraken are 2-0-2 with six points through four games in 2025-26, having lost their last two games 4-3 in a shootout to the Ottawa Senators and 5-4 in overtime to the Montreal Canadiens. In 2024-25, Seattle went 35-41-6 with 76 points, seventh in the Pacific Division and 13th in the Western Conference, 20 points shy of a playoff spot.

Technology

Jimmy Snuggerud is giving the Blues another offensive weapon

The St. Louis Blues are 2-1-0 to start the 2025-26 regular season, with wins over the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. The team has seen production from several players, including Jake Neighbours’ three goals, Nathan Walker and Pavel Buchnevich each with two assists, and Robert Thomas scoring a goal and assist of his own. But it’s Jimmy Snuggerud, the 21-year-old who made his NHL debut last season, who leads the way with three points by way of two goals and an assist. Snuggerud, a 2022 first-round pick, dominated the NCAA with the University of Minnesota, scoring 135 points (66 goals and 69 assists) during his three seasons in the Big 10. Since signing an entry-level deal, his transition to the pro game has been as smooth as the team could hope. On Tuesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discuss Snuggerud’s early impact on the group and where he fits into the Blues’ forward corps. Tyler Yaremchuk: Dating back to last year, Snuggerud has got seven points in his last 10 games. This St. Louis team, I think I tend to overlook them, but when you take a peak at who they already have, and with Snuggerud being another piece in that group, I think the Blues are closer to being a team that’s in the inner circle of Stanley Cup contenders than they are a team that’s fighting for a playoff spot. Carter Hutton: I agree. I guess for him, he’s a guy who gets overlooked when we were predicting the Calder Trophy race. He’s a little more mature of a player, I think he comes in a little less offensively dominant, like some of the guys like Ivan Demidov and Connor Bedard. Snuggerud fits in as a two-way, top-six guy who can do it all. You have some players up front like Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, Pavel Buchneviceh and Brayden Schenn, you can put Snuggerud in a good spot. You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…